» On being a rocket scientist
Due to the complexity and depth of this area of engineering—requiring mastery in fluid mechanics, orbital mechanics, flight dynamics, mathematics, control engineering, materials science, aeroelasticity, avionics, reliability engineering, noise control and flight test—it is also informally used as a term to describe an endeavor requiring great intelligence or technical ability.
“...you’re sitting there looking at streaming data, a big flurry of activity around you, wondering, ‘If the numbers were really right, then why is the satellite pointing the wrong way?’...You’d be amazed at how many stray satellites are out there.“ — Keoki Jackson, Rocket Scientist